Spotlight on Berlin: Weinerei

In a city where beer is available around the clock- a lot of the time being cheaper than water, it’s nice to take a break from Germany’s favourite brews to indulge in another favourite beverage of mine, wine. After hearing stories about a cozy wine bar with a unique twist, curiosity finally got the better of me.

Nestled in one of Berlin’s more affluent districts Weinerei is without doubt a novel concept for a wine bar. We were initially greeted by a friendly, imperial, moustached gentleman who gave us the low down on how everything worked to get us started on our merry way. The simple premise goes like this - you pay 2euro for an empty glass, upon taking this glass you are welcome to sample any- or all- of the wines lined up on the counter. Once you find one that takes your fancy you then fill your glass with your preferred choice. And repeat. For as many times as you wish throughout the evening. Only after you’ve consumed your weight in wine and are ready to stumble to the nearest U-Bahn station to take you home do you pay and by pay I mean putting into a jar, situated by the exit, the equivalent of however much you think you consumed. So just like Berlin’s public transport authority this wine bar has based their payment system on the premise of an honour-box.

Pure genius I hear you say? I wholeheartedly agree.

Starting every day after 8pm the buffet style wine offerings include red, white, rose and prosecco, each made of a mix of locally produced specialities and other European varietals including Spanish and Italian wines. This is the part where I admit that nothing comes close to New Zealand’s array of top notch tipples but I’m also not one to turn down our foreign counterparts. The selection of reds were definitely a clear winner for me, one in particular had a delicious hint of Vanilla that I’ve been thinking about since.

You could also be mistaken for thinking you are in a bar the likes of which you would expect to find in Ponsonby or Kingsland. The intimate interior is filled with inviting retro furniture, clusters of oversized light bulb pendant lights and a large 4ft glass bottle suspended from the ceiling.

While this busy little bar is filled with locals and tourists alike, Weinerei imbues the city’s signature chilled vibe and is the perfect place to relax and drink with friends on a cold night. Upon exiting I got the distinct impression this would not be my last appearance at this Berlin gem.

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Weekly Digest x Wise Cicada

Under the firm belief that she was born in the wrong generation, Francesca yearns to live in a time when women wore flapper dresses and everyone danced the Charleston. After taking far too long to finish a degree due to indecision, and following her heart (not head), finally graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Auckland University. Naturally, she came out the other side even more confused about her life path than before, but was equipped with well rounded views about the world and a strong desire to travel. The next logical step was to temporarily move to Berlin, and, like the hoards of other expats, endlessly search for a job and have wild-life experiences that will obviously one day be published into a best seller. When she's not navigating around German bureaucracy and learning to speak nicht so gut Deutsch, Francesca will be bringing you the best of the best of the grimy, morally questionable, culturally artistic melting pot that is Berlin.